Van Duren

Part of the same Memphis underground pop scene that spawned Big Star and Chris Bell, Van Duren is an enduring cult hero among power pop enthusiasts, and he has recorded a handful of records that earned him a loyal following. Heavily influenced by the Beatles, Badfinger, and the Raspberries, his 1978 debut, Are You Serious?, revealed him to be a songwriter with a strong command of pop hooks and estimable instrumental skills, but various setbacks prevented him from releasing a follow-up until 1999's Hailstone Holiday, a collaboration with Tommy Hoehn. Nevertheless, Duren continued to be a presence on the Memphis music scene in a variety of acts well into the 2010s, and at the end of the decade his life and music were explored both in the film Waiting: The Van Duren Story and its accompanying soundtrack of the same name.